


i will be your guardian.

by redhoods



Series: widofjord week 2019. [10]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, M/M, Paladin Fjord, Protectiveness, Widofjord Week, many rules of d&d were broken to make this possible
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-23
Updated: 2019-06-23
Packaged: 2020-05-16 19:02:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19324198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redhoods/pseuds/redhoods
Summary: “Caleb!” He shouts, hissing as a dagger digs into his back, he sweeps out with the falchion and doesn’t make contact.There’s no verbal response that he can hear, aside from Caleb’s arcane muttering and the next flash of fire strikes to the left. A hiss next to him means it made contact and he shuffles in the direction it came from. He bumps into a body, reaching out instinctively and taking hold. “Caleb,” he murmurs in response, smelling sulfur and smoke.“Ah, ha, hallo,” Caleb says low and then fires over his shoulder.





	i will be your guardian.

**Author's Note:**

> listen, i fucking love the paladin class a whole lot. i want to play them all the time and the idea of fjord as a paladin oath of redemption is *chef’s kiss*. liam would be so upset to see how i’ve completely ignored all rules of d&d to make this possible. 
> 
> anyways. oath of redemption paladin’s at level seven get the ability to use their reaction to take the damage from an attack against another creature within ten feet of them. and. well. yeah.
> 
> for widofjord week day seven - song lyrics.
> 
>  _“i will be your guardian when all is crumbling, i’ll steady your hand”_ from never say never by the fray.

Their mistake is that they get spread thin.

The party’s strong suit is working together in close quarters, keeping each other within sight, clerics buffeting them in, keeping anyone from staying down for too long.

Fjord loses sight of Jester almost immediately and it isn’t long before he loses track of Caduceus as well. It’s too dark and sand is whipping passed his face and it feels like he’s got burns across his face. Their enemy, enemies, keep disappearing into it like shadows and Fjord shouts his frustrations to the skies.

The falchion twists in his grasp and he makes a wild swing, surprising himself when he makes contact. There’s a flash of green radiant energy from the point of connection and he snarls in the not face of the creature.

It wails and disappears into the sandstorm. 

To his left, there’s a burst of flame and Fjord instinctively moves in that direction, towards Caleb.

The last person that needs to be left alone out here is Caleb, powerful but far too squishy. He watches for the flashes of fire, scrubbing the back of his hand over his eyes. It just digs the grit in and he pulls his goggles back down even if it obstructs the sides of his vision.

“Caleb!” He shouts, hissing as a dagger digs into his back, he sweeps out with the falchion and doesn’t make contact.

There’s no verbal response that he can hear, aside from Caleb’s arcane muttering and the next flash of fire strikes to the left. A hiss next to him means it made contact and he shuffles in the direction it came from. He bumps into a body, reaching out instinctively and taking hold. “Caleb,” he murmurs in response, smelling sulfur and smoke.

“Ah, ha, hallo,” Caleb says low and then fires over his shoulder.

“You thought about pulling out that fancy globe of yours?” He asks, turning them to take a swing through the dust. He strikes and swings again into the same area.

Another wail comes from the dust and Fjord grits his teeth against the sound.

Caleb surges against him with a soft pained sound and Fjord growls. A hand pats at his chest almost absently as Caleb turns, “I dropped it somewhere out here,” he admits, tone upset and frustrated. Then he takes a step away, widening the distance between them.

Then he sees Caleb pull something glowing from his pocket and knows what’s coming, the wall that surges up around them, fire lighting up the area, almost full encompassing them.

There’s a lot of shrieking as it emerges, but the dust continues to whip through and Fjord knows there’s no way they’re safe. More wailing starts and he shrugs the feeling off, the Wildmother’s warmth suffusing through him and he knows it’ll reach Caleb now that they’re closer.

He doesn’t even see the creature coming from him, too focused on Caleb, but Caleb sees it, like he does everything. Fire illuminates his face, fierce lines of concentration and he intercedes, steps in front of the attack with a wave of his hand through the air. The arcane shield explodes into life and Caleb is knocked backwards right into Fjord’s chest.

“Brave,” Fjord says low to him and wraps his left arm around his middle, swinging out at the creature, the nebulous outline of it visible against the fire.

Caleb laughs breathless in his arms, then wheezes out a hoarse cough.

This close, with the fire lighting him up, Fjord can see blood running down his temple, out of his ear, “How bad are you hurt?”

“I have been worse,” he answers, which is not really an answer, considering the number of times he’s been on death’s door. He tries to pull away, but Fjord doesn’t let him this time. “Are you keeping me hostage now?”

Another creature bounces off the arcane shield before it dissipates in a fizzle of magic.

Fjord snorts out a laugh and presses a kiss to the back of Caleb’s head, focusing on the warmth, the sound of the wind rushing by his ears. Soft green light fills his vision briefly and Caleb breathes out suddenly, something like relief. “There,” he says and doesn’t release him.

“Danke, liebling,” Caleb replies, quiet over the whipping winds, and slams out another fire bolt.

Looking out, there are still so many creatures and he still isn’t sure where the others are, “We have to find the others,” he says and throws his arm up against one of the creatures that comes for Caleb.

The pain burns through his chest and he tries not to gasp aloud. 

It doesn’t help against the subsequent attacks though, coming at them from all sides, too many daggers for him to stop them all.

He has to release Caleb to move, to turn and swing out with the falchion in each direction, carving through the dust figures with what he’s hoping is enough force to be effective. He can’t tell anymore, there’s too much of them.

Thankfully though, Caleb doesn’t pull from his side, keeping them pressed together as he shoves his hand into the glove, immediately firing out several spirals of fire. Two of the creatures that he can see disperse into dust and ash, scattering in the whipping winds.

Another wail rises and Fjord shouts back at the sound.

At his side, Caleb groans in pain and Fjord immediately steps in to block him, the next strike burning through his chest once more.

“Fjord!” Caleb says and whatever he was going to say next is lost as he suddenly droops forward, slumping into Fjord’s side. Fjord hastily grabs him around the shoulders, trying to keep him up and trying to shield him all at once.

“Shit! Fuck! Shit!” 

The wall of fire disappears into nothing and once again, he can barely see anything, except, just out of range, glowing. Two spots of it, not too far away, and he thinks it must be Caduceus and Jester. Or he hopes so.

“Caleb! Fjord!” Someone is shouting and he can just barely hear them.

He lowers Caleb carefully, standing over him as he whips out wildly with the falchion, “Over here!” He yells into the wind and hopes it carries. He’s very nearly out of magic, but he doesn’t want to bring Caleb up just for him to go down again, “Guys! Help!”

There’s a whisper on the wind, a voice warm and familiar, calling to mind something he’s seen Caduceus do a few times now.

He holds his falchion in the air and calls on that familiar energy once more, warmth pooling in his hands and spreading up through the falchion until there’s a burst of light and he and Caleb are no longer in darkness.

A giant pillar of light surrounds them and hopefully the others will come towards it.

It doesn’t seem to deter the creatures, but he can see them now, the vague shapes of the dust spending in the air even as the wind whips by.

They advance on him and he shouts up to the sky, hoping to keep their attention on him and not the unconscious wizard at his feet. It seems to work, they don’t seem to care about Caleb now that he’s down and Fjord hisses as blades dig in, slash at his skin.

He growls and twists his falchion again, calling on that magic and praying the others are close as he pulls fire to his falchion, watching it lick up his blade. Thinking of Caleb at his feet, he slashes out at the creatures, cutting through them.

They hiss and wail more.

“Fjord!” It’s Beau.

She bursts through the dust, swinging with her fists. They’re glowing again and he watches her scatter dust off the creatures that immediately whips away, “Where’s Caleb?”

He jerks his falchion down towards his feet.

Her gaze drops, unreadable behind her goggles and she turns her head, “Jessie! You still there?”

The creatures surge back around them, several digging at Beau but Fjord snarls at them, feeling the pain tear through his chest.

She doesn’t seem to notice.

A knife digs into his side and he shouts, swinging with his fire wreathed falchion, dispersing another.

“I’m here! I’m here!” Jester bursts into the bubble of light, nearly slamming into Beau in her hurry. “Who’s hurt?” She’s brought her unicorns with her and they immediately set about gnawing on the creatures.

Fjord nearly falls over in his relief, “Caleb.”

Jester sighs, like she’s put upon, but he can see the worry around her eyes, “Squishy wizard!” She coos and swings around Beau, the tip of her tail gently smacking against Caleb’s cheek. There’s a quick burst of pink, sparkly energy, and Caleb gasps awake.

“Stay put!” Fjord growls at him, though it’s useless, Caleb’s too stubborn. He swings his falchion in an arc through two of the creatures,

It is useless, he feels the hand on his thigh as Caleb hauls himself up, keeping tucked against Fjord’s body, slumped in against him. “It is very bright,” he says nonsensically, then blasts fire from his hand, “Are you doing this, Fjord?”

“Could you two do this later?” Beau growls.

“Do what?”

Fjord nearly shouts in surprise when suddenly Nott is at his other side, firing bolts off one after the other, and they zip through the air, slinging through the creatures.

“They’re doing that flirting thing,” Jester sing-songs as her lollipop comes careening through the space in a wild arc. She cackles madly and claps her hands, bells chiming loudly around them all. Several of the creatures wail in response.

Beau goes to plug her ears, then stops halfway, “Hey! They’re less scary over here!”

“Caleb must be doing that!” Nott screeches and disappears around Fjord’s knees.

“Ah, I am not,” Caleb replies and fire goes streaking out wildly, one of the dust creatures whooshes out of the way and Caleb swears.

Caduceus suddenly appears in the area, staff held aloft and suddenly, his own swarm joins the area, this one of real beetles that crawl from his staff, “I believe that it is Mr. Fjord’s presence that is keeping the fear at bay, for those close to him that is.”

Fjord blinks, “What?”

“I feel Her around you,” Caduceus says with a serene smile as he smacks his shield at one of the creatures and it gets whipped away in the dust streams.

One of the creatures comes from Caleb and Fjord holds up his own arm, a shout pulling out of his throat unbidden as the feeling cuts through him. The falchion stops burning and he snarls at the creature, swinging out at it.

He goes too wide, weight sagging a little against Caleb who nudges him up right with a shoulder.

“Fjord, are you okay?” Jester asks as her lollipop spins through another creature. The unicorns converge on another creature as it comes to close and it gets blown into nothing.

“I’m fine,” he says, pulling himself upright, and swinging out, “Where’s Yasha?”

There’s no point in asking really, she comes roaring into the light, face slashed but seeming not to care as she carves through the dust creatures with large swings of Magician’s Judge, “I think the sandstorm is almost over,” she calls.

With all of them in sight, Fjord feels bolstered, taking two swipes with the falchion at the creatures nearest him, just as Jester’s lollipop slings through, and two crossbow bolts zip. by and then there’s nothing but dust.

The last creature takes Beau’s fists in rapid succession, before it disperses with a wail and all at once, the wind stops.

They’re left standing in a wide beam of light, covered in sand and scratches, but alive.

Fjord’s shoulders droops and he nearly drops the falchion, absently trying to bamf it away, before he slides it back into its sheath. There are hands on his cheeks and he blinks a few times to bring Caleb into focus.

His brow is drawn tight and Fjord frowns back at him, reaching out to press his thumb against the crinkle. Caleb’s face softens a little, “You are very hurt, Fjord,” he says it very slowly, like he’s talking to a. child.

“Am not,” he says automatically, hunching his shoulders, but the movement pulls at cuts and he sways a little, held up only by Caleb’s hands on his face and Caleb in front of him, “Maybe just a little bit,” he allows, holding his fingers up less than an inch apart.

Caleb scoffs at him and turns his head, “Caduceus, I think Fjord could use some healing, if you’ve got it.”

“No, don’t waste—“

“Do not argue with me, Fjord,” Caleb says and Fjord swallows and nods.

Somewhere to his right, Beau snorts loudly.

“If you don’t mind me saying, Mr. Caleb, I think you both could use it,” Caduceus says and holds up his staff, “How about we just take a few minutes and I can dole out some healing to everyone who needs it?” When no one protests, he nods and steps back a little, bending his head in prayer.

“Hey, Fjord!” Jester comes bouncing into his line of sight, “You’re getting pretty good at this magic stuff,” she says, “I mean, not that you weren’t already good at magic, but I like this kind better! It’s much nicer!” She flings her arms wide and gestures around them at the daylight encompassing them, “It’s so much warmer!”

Something jabs the back of his leg and Fjord jerks, “Ow, what the fuck?”

Nott comes around his knees into view, “Stop leaning on Caleb! You’re gonna squish him!”

Beau snorts again and comes over closer, “Fjord, you are leaning awfully heavy on him. I don’t think Caleb’s capable of holding the both of you up.”

“Like you’re one to talk,” Fjord snarks at her and straightens out so he’s not leaning on Caleb, though he doesn’t take his arm from around him, even though he doesn’t remember putting it there.

“You should be nicer to him, both of you,” Caleb says, “He took damage meant for both Beauregard and I,” then turns his critical eye on Fjord, “Do not think I wasn’t aware of you doing that either. It was very brave, but very foolish.”

Fjord squints at him, “I don’t think I actually have control over it—“

“I hear the but,” Beau interjects.

He ignores her, “I can take it better than you guys can.”

Beau punches him at the same time Caleb pinches him and he yelps, jerking away from both of them, “Hey!”

“Children play nicely,” Caduceus says mildly just as a wave of warmth washes over him and Fjord sucks in a deep breath of relief, then jerks his fingers at his own eyes before pointing them at Beau and Caleb.

Caleb scoffs and Beau flips him off.

He sniffs and juts his jaw into the air, “I’m not gonna apologize for any of it,” and then turns and starts walking.

“Fjord,” Caleb calls after him, “We’re going to other way.”

“Right, I knew that, just makin’ sure you were payin’ attention,” Fjord says and about faces to much snickering. 

Jester bounces beside him, “Oh, Caleb’s aaaaaaalways paying attention,” she says and loops their arms together so he can’t try to run away from her, even though he tries when she adds, “to your buttttt!”

“Ew,” says Nott.

“Gottem,” says Beau.

And noticeably, Caleb says nothing.

—————

When they get back to the town they’ve been staying in, they all converge towards the bathhouse without actually discussing it. Fjord and Nott both drop gold on the counter and they’re heading towards the communal bathing room when fingers wrap around his wrist and drag him sideways.

Only Yasha notices, the others too eager to get to the warm springs first and she holds a finger to her lips before carrying on.

Fjord blinks at Caleb as he’s tugged into one of the private bathrooms, “What’s going on?”

Caleb shoots him a small grin, pressing his back to the door to shut it, lifting his hand to slide the latch into place, “Do you not wish to bathe together?” His eyebrow lifts.

“Uh, is that a trick question?” He asks and tries not too visibly gulp when Caleb steps closer. He dips his shoulder when Caleb tugs at his arm, watching quietly as the human undoes the buckles to his breastplate. His movements are familiar in a way that makes warmth blossom in Fjord’s chest.

“This is not a trick, liebling,” Caleb tells him, smile soft, “I wish to take care of you like you have me.” He pauses, working on the straps that line Fjord’s side, “If that is all right with you?”

Fjord whistles quietly through his teeth and then nods, “Yeah, yeah, darlin’, that’s all right.”

Caleb rewards him with a bigger blooming smile, then nods as well, continuing to unbuckle Fjord’s armor, “Did you know that when you use your magic now you smell like flowers?” He asks. Then pulls the breastplate away, his movements suddenly jerking to a halt as flowers spill out, almost as if in response to the question.

Pressing his knuckles against his mouth, Fjord muffles a laugh, “Is that... does that explain it well enough for you?”

“Uh,” Caleb blinks down at the small pile of flowers formed at their feet, “Has this been happening long?”

Fjord bobs his head, chin tipping down to his chest, “Ever since Uk’otoa’s hold was broken on me,” he explains, “Flowers come out of—“ he rubs at his chest, the scar where the orb had forced its way from him, “Usually they end up trapped up in my shirt and armor.”

Caleb makes a little sound, low in the back of his throat, “They’re beautiful,” he says and stoops down, scooping up a handful of the flowers. He takes one and tucks it behind Fjord’s ear, so Fjord returns the favor, taking one of the red blooms and tucking it with a lock of Caleb’s hair behind his ear.

“I’ve given quite a few to Yasha for her books,” he shrugs and gently nudges the pile with the toe of his boot, it’s a riot of colors and sizes, “I think she’s going to need more books at this rate,” he adds sheepishly.

“Is this why you’ve been rushing off after fights, to shake off your clothes?” Caleb asks gently, then rucks up Fjord’s tunic so the rest of the flowers fall loose. Fjord has to hunch a little to raise his arms so Caleb can pull the fabric over his head.

Fjord hums quietly, “They get kinda itchy.”

That makes Caleb laugh, hoarse like its being dragged out of him.

Caleb reaches out and starts undoing the laces of his pants and Fjord startles into action, “You too,” he murmurs lowly, gently batting Caleb’s hands away to slide his coat down off his arms. He’s careful with it, draping it over the back of the sole chair in the room.

When he turns back, Caleb is in the process of removing his books and holsters, so Fjord lifts the back of holding up, tilting it open in his direction in silent offering.

“Danke,” Caleb cups a hand around his forearm, gently drawing him in and Fjord tilts down obligingly, smudging his lips to the corner of Caleb’s mouth in a playful tease before turning his head to kiss him properly.

It’s soft and easy, gentle in the wake of a rough day’s travel and fighting.

The tension in him unfurls bit by bit while he and Caleb work around each other, undressing and gently bumping into each other as they do so, both of them hesitant to break contact with one another.

There’s no sense of urgency behind it, no rush of arousal, no worry that one of their friends might burst in at any minute. 

It just is, they just are.

—————

Once they’ve cleaned up, scrubbed off, once Fjord has let Caleb work his long fingers into all the knots of his back and shoulders, once he’s gently bullied Caleb into letting him wash his hair, they slowly redress themselves.

Fjord scoops up one of the flower blooms after shoving his breastplate into the bag of holding, “Hey,” he calls as Caleb steps to the door. 

“Ja, have I forgotten something?”

Snorting softly, Fjord shakes his head and joins him at the door, tucking the bloom behind Caleb’s ear, “There,” he says and brushes his lips over the apple of Caleb’s cheek.

Caleb touches the flower gently, then drops his hand, tangling his fingers loosely through Fjord’s, “Ah, what is this for?” He seems curious, but his cheeks are tinged pink and Fjord can’t resist the urge to touch his lips there again, to feel the warmth.

He reaches past Caleb and pulls the door open, “For protection,” he replies and lets Caleb tug him out to rejoin the others.

**Author's Note:**

> any of my unfinished stuff for wfw will be posted sometime in the next week or two which includes: pride month modern au stuff and also mermaid fjord. and also some other stuff so... stay tuned.
> 
> find me on twitter and tumblr.


End file.
